Loved After All
by silverdragon994
Summary: [ NejiTen ] ”Why are you saying things like that? You never loved me. I knew it…But I loved you…Why do things to hurt me if you do love me?” quotes Tenten. R&R.


**Loved After All summary:** Tenten was always in love with Neji Hyuuga, but he doesn't love her. He loves Sakura. Neji and Sakura are dating, leaving Tenten heartbroken. If he's happy, then she is too. Or is she really?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I don't have anything against Tenten, she's my favorite character! It's just that it fits into the story!

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**Loved After All**

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Sakura Haruno. Beautiful, smart, intelligent, she even had fan boys chasing after her. A good fashion sense, strong, unique. In other words, perfect.

Neji Hyuuga. Cold-hearted, handsome, fan girls chasing after him. Strong, powerful, determined. Another perfect person.

Tenten. None of the above. Just your average teenager who's heart gets crushed. Sakura and Neji; dating. Tenten. Heartbroken, weak, insignificant, stupid, ugly, never loved at all.

And she would never be loved. Never in infinity, never in her life. Besides, she didn't want to be. She was a giver, and that's what she would always be. To give and never to receive. She didn't want to anyway. Lee was her only true friend. He was uglier than her, so the ugly people stay together right?

Besides, she wasn't in the mood to try to lift up her spirits. She told Lee to leave her alone today. She didn't want to be in his way when he was training. Anyway, Neji now had Sakura, who was loved all her life. Tenten wasn't even looked at twice, not like Sakura. Every man, except Sasuke, was drooling over her. She always got what she wanted; Tenten never did.

What made Sakura so special anyways? Nothing Tenten could find special, but somehow, Neji loved her, not Tenten. Tenten could live without love, and without anyone in her life. That's the way it always has been, and it never would change. She liked it that way, and when she would die, no one would give a damn, and that's the way she wanted it.

Her beautiful brown locks were tucked in tightly in her signature panda buns, with her smile glued on as a sad frown. Her eyes were red from crying, and her face was blotchy. Darting her eyes at the beautiful view in front of her, she sighed; deeply.

She was standing on a hard, firm and grassy cliff, around the outskirts of Konoha. The cliff ended just three feet from her foot, leading into clear, azure waters, with the orange setting sun reflecting itself on it. The ginger orb was setting fast, but Tenten didn't care. She spent the whole day here, crying her eyes out.

_What did she have that I don't? _Tenten thought with hot tears streaming down her face. _Oh, right. Everything. Beauty, looks, smarts, and Neji. Yep, that's everything…_ She sobbed lightly as looking upon the view.

"Neji…" She whispered lowly. "If you're happy…" Tenten hesitated saying it. "Then…So am I… J-just…Don't forget about me…Please don't…"

Tears just kept on pouring down as she remembered the scene and replayed it over and over.

**Flashback:**

_Tenten was happily skipping down to her training area, as she did every morning at six. She knew that Neji was waiting for her, and everytime she thought about him, it gave her more of a spring in her step._

_Just as she was skipping into the grassy clearing, she absorbed two chakra notions. "What?" Tenten murmured as she gulped down her chakra to hide it. She sprang up to a high tree branch in the near by tree, but just high enough to hear what the figures were saying._

"_So, what have you called me here for Neji-kun?" It was Sakura's sweet voice. Tenten bit her lip at the ending suffix. _Neji-kun? What the hell? _Tenten thought as furrowed her brows._

"_Yes, well, I've liked you a long time and I was wondering if…" This voice was cold and harsh. It belonged to Neji. Tenten didn't like where this was going. _Liked her? A long time? _She thought again as she dug her nails into the tree bark. "You would go out with me?"_

_Tenten gulped hard. What? Neji going out with Sakura? Was this a joke or something? Was it for the time that she spilled jambalaya on Neji when they went to the foreign restaurant in Suna? What was going on?_

_Sakura's smile widened and neared his face. "Yes, I would," she said, pulling him close into a passionate kiss._

_No. No. NO! This could not be happening! Tenten's heart shattered into tiny bite sized pieces. No…No…NO…NO!_

_The brown haired kunoichi felt hot, damp tears fill in her eyes as they turned glassy enough for an ice skater to skate on._

_Tenten quickly poofed out of there before things went into the extreme. She poofed into her home, where she spent two weeks crying over a man that would never love her. Ever. And that was true. He would never love her. Ever. She was too plain and ordinary to be worthy enough for him. _

_Besides, he never even bothered to notice that she wasn't coming to training for a month. And he didn't even care. He never would…_

**End Flashback. **

He never would… A month and two weeks passed by quickly since then, and everytime she went home, she knew no one was checking up on her. She was just too plain and simple. Too obvious for anyone.

"Maybe Lee could learn to love me…" Tenten murmured sadly, wiping away tears. "Maybe he can father my children…Maybe he can be my husband…"

Little did she know that someone was watching her, and listening very intently. _Love, kids, husband? All from Lee? _The someone thought, with a frustrated look on his face. He was hiding behind a tree, heart-broken at her words.

She knew someone was watching her, but she couldn't care less. It was her life, and she wanted it taken away from her. Now.

"Maybe he can die by my side, loving me in a way no one ever did," Tenten whispered, her gaze averting from the ground to the sunset. It was almost dark, but she didn't care for that either. It's not like she had someone waiting for her back home. No. Not at all.

Everyone missed her birthday, except Lee. Lee only cared, Lee only loved her. Lee was her only one. Maybe she was falling for Lee, and just maybe…She felt that she was…

"Lee…I think I love you…" She said forlornly as she hugged her knees tighter smiling at the idea. "And maybe…You love me back…"

Finally after a month and a half, she smiled. The smile that everyone adorned. The smile that laced the world with happiness. The smile that had gotten Hyuuga Neji's heart. Everything was out of order and it was Neji's turn, finally, to put it back in its place.

"Lee…Yes…I am in love with you…" Her smile widened as she brushed away loose strands of hair from her face.

Warm, strong arms collapsed against her shoulders as the someone whispered longingly into her ear, "But if you love him…Your heart won't have enough room for me in it…"

Tenten's heart raced and her welcoming earthy brown eyes widened in fear. Why was that someone hugging her? Why did his chakra feel so familiar?

"Nani?" Tenten whispered, not bothering to look who it is. She was scared, she can admit that, but why, and who even cared for her? Cared for her so much that she was being hugged?

"Tenten…You know that I love you…Why say such things?" the voice was being spoken with sympathy and it was bittersweet. It felt familiar as everything about him. Who was he?

"Neji…?" Tenten enveloped her arms around his, still facing backwards, gazing at the sun, which was about to set. Tears filled her eyes as she blinked from the stinging. The tears raced down her hot, pink cheeks. "Why are you saying things like that? You never loved me. I knew it…But I loved you…Why do things to hurt me if you do love me?"

Neji ignored her questions as he nuzzled his face on the crook of her neck. She sat there; emotionless. Nothing but sadness painted on her face, and Neji noticed that.

"What, no kun at the end?" He asked quizzically. Tenten didn't answer. Emotions and feelings were bobbing through her mind as she held onto Neji's arms.

"Why are you even here? Aren't you supposed to be with Haruno or something?" Tenten voice was coated with venom and she let go of her grip on his arms. He was startled as she stood up, grasping her elbows for warmth. It was pretty late, and the fog was only beginning to sail through the landscape.

Neji shook his head as he stood up too. "Gomen…I realized that I don't love Sakura, I love you…" His voice was sprinkled with soft, heart-warming words. But that didn't help. She knew he was doing it out of pity.

The weapons mistress arched an eyebrow in disbelief. "Oh yea? So if you do love me…Prove it," She was now rubbing her upper arms to warm herself even more. Neji unzipped his jacket and wrapped it wrapped it around Tenten's skinny, slim body. She clutched onto it; her knuckles turning white of her grasp.

Neji watched her pout, and he watched her walk away. She was walking away…Into the hands of Lee…

No, he wouldn't let that happen. He started running after the beautiful girl that stood before him only ten minutes ago.

She was about to leave and hop onto her small motorcycle when Neji stopped her by tugging on her wrist. She spun around to meet his face. Neji held Tenten's head before gazing into brown chocolate orbs.

Russet met Byakugan. Byakugan met russet.

Tenten gazed back into his eyes before whispering, "If you do love me…Then…Prove it…" Neji smirked and leaned in close. Tenten was just about his height, but still needed to tip-toe to reach his face.

The Hyuuga prodigy cupped her delicate, warm, blotchy (from crying) face and pulled it closer nto a perfect kiss. On instinct, Tenten laced her arms around Neji's strong neck, heaving him closer, and making the kiss more passionate.

The kiss lasted a long while, and when they broke free, they looked at each other, Tenten smiling, Neji smirking.

"I think I just did." Neji whispered into Tenten's ear, as now she knew that someone loved her. Not because of pity, not because of a dare. He slung his arm over Tenten's shoulder, shouting to the world that she was his, never to be anyone else's.

Now she was being…herself. And that was enough to know that Neji loved her for who she was and not how pretty she can be like Hinata, not how smart she can be like Sakura, not how popular she can be like Ino.

But how she can be herself, with not only one, but now two loved her. Average wasn't one of the categories anymore. Tenten was now an official category.

So now Tenten knew that someone loved her and they loved her back. And that was all that mattered.

Until Lee came into the picture shouting something about youthful ramen…That was two things that mattered. One, loving Neji and Two? Finding a way to shut Lee up…

**The End…**

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**Author's Notes: **So what did you think of this? It was really random fic but I tried my best! Please R&R:)


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